Blue-sky mining &ndash the battle for solar supremacy

University of NSW students have armed themselves with a secret weapon in the latest battle for solar-powered supremacy, Bob Jennings reports.

Blue-sky mining &ndash the battle for solar supremacy

09 February 2003Bob Jennings

It's not often that a do-it-yourself racer can compete with the world's best. Unless it's a solar car built by the University of NSW.

The university has a long history of developing cutting-edge solar technology and students involved in its solar racing car, Sunswift II, have been flat out over the holidays making solar cells for the car's latest solar array.

The car and the team of about 30 students will be put to the test in the SunRace 2003 solar-car race, which will start in Adelaide on Saturday and finish in Sydney on February 23, having covered 2300 kilometres through Peterborough, Broken Hill, Mildura, Melbourne, Albury and Canberra.

The solar array may be Sunswift II's secret weapon in the team's continuing battle with Melbourne's Aurora, which was the winner of last year's SunRace, setting a world record average speed for a solar-car event of 94.5kmh.

Sunswift II is claimed to be the only solar racer in the world produced by a team that has developed and produced its own solar cells.

And it will use an advanced telemetry system that has also been developed at the university.

Professor Martin Green, of the UNSW Photovoltaic Centre, said that not only were the cells used on the car of a higher performance than those available commercially, they were also cheaper and more rugged.

Solar-car racing had significantly accelerated research into photovoltaic cells, he said.

Sunswift II is theoretically capable of 160kmh and has been timed at 140kmh in the Northern Territory. In strong sunlight it has a sustainable cruising speed of 85 to 90kmh.

SunRace organiser John Hoerner said the event was in addition to the original solar-car race, the World Solar Challenge, which is run between Darwin and Adelaide every two years.

Vice-chancellor and president of the University of NSW Professor Wyatt Hume announced funding for the project of $50,000 a year for the next three years, in addition to corporate backing.

The Sunswift II was unveiled during the launch of the race by state energy minister Kim Yeadon, who said the event would "bring solar cars out of the outback" and into cities as a new icon of sustainable technology.